


loved you then, love you now

by tourmalinex



Series: Distant Blue, Grounded Green [1]
Category: Free!
Genre: Fluff, Love Confession, M/M, One Shot, Reaffirming Love, and drowned in makoharu tears, guess who watched the movie, these two will be the death of me, this guy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-02
Updated: 2016-09-02
Packaged: 2018-08-12 13:41:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 916
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7936849
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tourmalinex/pseuds/tourmalinex
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Haruka Nanase was never one for words. Everything he wanted to say was conveyed through his childhood friend, who always knew what was on his mind. But as Haruka makes an important decision, he wants to tell Makoto how he feels.</p>
            </blockquote>





	loved you then, love you now

The setting sun was still shining brilliantly, giving the sky tints of red. As Haruka stepped out to get some groceries, he immediately questioned his decision to walk in the humidity. Beads of sweat rolled down the side of his face and his eyebrows scrunched together in disgust. The moisture was unpleasant, and Haruka would rather be soaking in his bathtub. However, Makoto would be coming by for dinner and he put in a request for a dish that wasn't mackerel. 

“Squid might be good,” Makoto had said. “Or maybe you could make a stir fry.”

 _Maybe I could compromise_ , Haruka thought. _Squid stir fry it is._

The trip itself had nothing special of note except for the stray cat that was fond of Maktoto. Whenever Haruka was by himself, the cat would follow, as if to ask, “where is he today?” Though he wasn't too keen on the cat following him to the front door, Haruka didn't have it in him to shoo it away. Instead, he made eye contact and bowed his head with a quiet, “wait here.” After putting the groceries away, Haruka grabbed a can of mackerel, opened it and brought it outside. The cat rubbed itself around Haruka's leg, walking in a figure eight as it purred. Haruka placed the can down, watching as the cat nearly shoved its whole face into the can. 

“Enjoy the meal,” he murmured, petting the top of the cat's head.

“That's sweet of you, Haru-chan.”

Haruka looked up to see Makoto approaching his house with a small white box. The taller teen smiled gently, tilting his head like always. “I brought some of my mom's cake.”

“If you drop the -chan, then you can come in,” Haruka said, sighing as he stood back up and brushed himself off. 

“I can't make any promises,” Makoto said, laughing slightly. 

As Haruka's eyebrows furrowed, he walked in back into the house only to turn, giving Makoto an expectant look. 

“Alright, I'm coming in.” Makoto entered the house, took off his shoes and brought the cake to the table. Haruka, on the other hand, had gone into the kitchen and returned with a tray carrying a pitcher of chilled tea, two glasses, two small plates and two forks. He placed the tray down and settled across from Makoto, staring down at the table.

"What's on your mind, Haru?"

There would be no hiding it from Makoto. Haruka continued to look away, noticing that his heart rate was rising. _Keep calm, it's okay,_ he told himself. Feeling Makoto's gaze, Haruka inhaled deeply and exhaled slowly. He was never good at communicating his thoughts or desires—except in regards to water. Even then, it wasn't until recently that his relationship to water had changed. After a few more deep breaths, Haruka's eyes met with Makoto's as a faint blush searing into his cheeks.

"Do you remember what you said to me in middle school?" Haruka asked.

Makoto tilted his head to the side. "You're going to have to be more specific."

A frown tugged at the corners of Haruka's mouth. Although Makoto apologized—words weren't needed, it was all in his expression—it filled him with doubt. "You... you said that you loved swimming and that you loved me."

Makoto's ears burned. "A-Ah... yeah, I did." He rubbed the back of his neck and swayed his body from side to side. "I... um... I meant it. I still mean it. I-I love you, Haru."

"I never... I... didn't get to say it as clearly." Haruka's voice grew quiet. "But I want to give a more definite answer." He managed to scoot closer to Makoto, making the brunette straighten his posture and turn to face Haruka. Any hints of being flustered were now blatant, as both their faces were completely red from ear to ear.

_Just tell him. It'll all fall into place if you just tell him._

"Makoto, I love you and I don't want to be without you. I... picked a university in Tokyo. We—" Before he could say anything else, Makoto wrapped his arms around Haruka, squeezing tightly. The smaller teen could feel a dampness on his shoulder—was Makoto crying?

"When did you decide?" Makoto asked, pulling away, wiping his eyes with the back of his hands.

"Right before we retired from the club." Haruka gave a soft smile. "It's not going to be the same university, but I'll be close by. That way, we can see each other often."

"But are you sure?" Makoto placed his hands on top of Haruka's. "What if there's a better place for you? With your swimming, you could go anywhere. Are you sure that's where you want to go?"

Haruka shook his head. "The only place I want to be is by your side."

Hearing himself say those words made Haruka fee light-headed, but the feeling itself wasn't completely unpleasant. He could breathe easier with his feelings and plans out in the open and seeing the happiness swelling within Makoto's eyes made it all the more rewarding. As Makoto pulled him in for another embrace, Haruka thought back on how much they had grown together and as separate people. But even with all the growth and changes they were going through and will go through, it was safe to assume that at least one thing would stay the same.

_I loved you back then, all those years ago. I love you now. I'll always be here and I'll always love you._

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys! The titled came from Grouplove's "Tongue Tied." This is my first makoharu fic, so yeah... I was absolutely elated when Starting Days came out and now I'm just sitting here, awaiting whatever new project they're gonna come out with. I have a lot of ideas for one shots and one longer story in the works, though I have other fics in other fandoms that I'm gonna be working on. ~~This is what happens when you function off of caffeine.~~ On that note, if there's any mistakes or inconsistencies, let me know! I posted this when I should be sleeping  >>
> 
> Anyways, hope this was alright and I'll see y'all later.


End file.
